Wringer



06L 4 R. w. SHIELD 2,409,

.WRINGER Fil ed Jan. 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct. 15, 1946.

R. w. SHI ELD 2,409,595 WRINGER Filed Jan. 7, 1944 4 Sheets-$hee 2 R. w.' SHIELD Oct. 15, 1946.

YJRINGER Filed Jan. 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 R. W. SHIELD WRINGER Oct. 15, 1946.

Filed Jan. 7, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 axis parallel to the shaft Patented Oct. 15, 1946 UNITED STATES-"PATENT OFFICE WRINGER Robert W. Shield, Chicago, Ill.

Application January 7, 1944, Serial No. 517,355

10 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a wringer and more particularly to clothes wringers for domestic use.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a wringer in which safety means are provided to release pressure on the rolls by the natural movement of an operator. Thus if an operator should get his fingers caught the natural movements effected in attempting to pull them loose will release the rolls.

Another object of the invention is to provide a Wringer in which an operator can feed material to the rolls without the necessity of forcing it into the rolls with his fingers.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a wringer in which water passing through the rolls is separated immediately from thematerial and is conducted away from the material.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wringer in which the material more or less automatically finds its way into the rolls. According to one construction a feed plate is provided to receive the material and to 'feed it into the rolls.

A still further object is to provide a wringer which is easily and quickly reversed. In one dosirable construction, the wringer parts are carried by a frame which is rotatable about a vertical pivot and drive means are provided for driving the wringer from either end.

The above and other objects and advantages will be more readily apparent from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wringer embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is a top plan view;

Figure 3 is an enlarged transverse section on the line 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an end elevation with parts of the cover broken away; and

Figure 5 is a section on the broken line 55 of Figure 4.

The wringer as shown comprises a support which may extend across the top of a tub or the like and may be rigidly secured thereto. A frame I] is rotatably mounted on the support on a vervtical pivot l2 and is adapted to carry the working parts of the wringer. The frame is formed with end portions IS in which a roll I4 is rotatably mounted on a shaft 15. The shaft l5 extends beyond the frame at both ends and is formed with non-circular end portions through which it may be driven as explained hereinafter. V

A second roll I6 is mounted on a horizontal l5 and both shafts lie in a plane at an acute angle to the horizontal. The roll I6 is journaled in end plates l! which slide in spaced parallel grooves in the frame end portions l3 as best seen in Figures 4 and 5. An elongated spring I8 is connected at its ends to the plates I! as by bolts as shown in Figur 4 and serves to urge the roll l6 toward the roll 14.

The spring I8 is engaged by a latch mechanism including a cam member l9 mounted on a rotatable shaft 2| which extends parallel to the rolls. The cam [9 includes a single lobe which engages the spring l8 intermediate its ends as best seen in Figure 3 to press the roll l6 against the roll 14. When the cam is turned it will release the spring permitting the rolls to move apart. The cam may be controlled by a lever 22 secured to the shaft 2| and lying outside of the casing.

Material is fed into the rolls over a guard plate pivoted at 23 on the frame and including a sheet metal skirt portion 24 which extends from a point below the level of the rolls to a peak substantially above the rolls. Material is adapted to be fed over the guard plate and downwardly into the rolls so that there is very little likelihood of an operator reaching over the guard plate to get his fingers caught in the rolls.

In the event that an operator should be caught in the rolls the guard plate provides a convenientmeans for releasing the roll pressure. For this purpose, a finger 25 secured to the guard plate engages an operating projection 26 on the cam !9. When the guard plate is rocked about the pivot 23 in a counter-clockwise direction as seen in Figure .3, the cam ['9 will be turned to release the spring. An operator whose fingers were caught in the rolls by the natural movement of attempting to pull away from the rolls would exert pressure on the upper part of the guard plate to rock it in a direction to release the spring latch. Therefore, even if an operator should be caught in the rolls there is very little possibility that he would be injured since his first natural movement would release the pressure on the rolls.

Material fed over the guard plate is guided into i the rolls by a feed plate 21 which is hollow and extends upwardly and outwardly away from the rolls with itsedges closely adjacent the roll I4.

The feed plate extends acrossbetween side members 28 on the frame completely filling the space between the side members. Thus material fed over the guard plate and not passing immediately into the rolls will be received on the feed plate and will slide downward toward the rolls until it is picked up thereby. In order to prevent material hanging over the guard plate from pulling material back from the feed plate and rolls, the guard plate is preferably corrugated as shown to reduce slipping of the material thereon.

Material passing through the rolls is received on a drainboard 29 terminating at one edge 30 closely adjacent the roll 15 and extendin down and out away from the rolls. If desired, the edge 30 may be provided with a flexible strip of rubber or the like to seat against the roll I 6. At its upper portion adjacent the rolls the guard plate is perforated as shown at 3! so that any water passing through the rolls with the material will be immediately drained away from the material and will not be re-absorbed thereby.

Water flowing over the rolls and through the perforations 3| in the drainboard is received by a drain plate 32 connected to the drainboard just below the lowermost series of perforations. The drain plate extends away from the rolls in the opposite direction from the drainboard to conduct water squeezed from the material away from the material immediately.

Any water entering the hollow feed plate 21 is prevented from flowing on to the drainboard by a seal 33 sealing the lower edge of the feed plate against the roll M. The bottom portion of the feed plate is tapered downwardly away from the center as best seen in Figure and terminates in troughs 34 at the opposite ends of the feed plate. The troughs 34 will conduct any water collected in the feed plate to the drain plate.

The rolls are adapted to be driven through the shaft l5 by a driving mechanism of any desired type indicated generally at 35. Power is supplied to this mechanism from a vertical shaft 36 which is connected to a horizontal shaft 31 through the usual bevelled gearing or the like. The shaft 31 carries a clutch member 38 slidably splined or keyed to the shaft and formed at its outer end to engage the flattened ends of the shaft IS. The housing for the drive mechanism may carry a shifting lever connected to the clutch 38 and operated from the bottom of the housing or in any other desired manner.

With this construction the entire wringer assembly can be turned end for end about the pivot I2 so that material maybe fed into the wringer from either side of the drive mechanism. When the wringer is turned the opposite ends of the shaft [5 successively come into alignment with the shaft 31 in a position to be engaged by the clutch 38. Engagement of the clutch with the shaft l5 prevents further turning of the wringer about its pivot and establishes a driving connection between the shafts l5 and 31. It will be noted that the shaft l5 projects sufficiently beyond the wringer frame so that the corners of the frame will clear the end of the shaft 31 as the wringer is turned. The shaft ends are preferably enclosed in housing parts 39 registering with the housing of the drive mechanism 35 to provide a smooth assembly of neat appearance.

While one embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail herein, it is understood that this is illustrative only and is intended not as a definition of the scope of the invention, reference being had for that purpose to the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls rotatably mounted on the frame, means including a latch to urge the rolls together, a guard plate movably mounted on the frame above the rolls over which material is fed to pass downwardly into the rolls, and a connection between the guard plate and the latch to release the latch upon a predetermined movement of the guard plate.

2. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls rotatably mounted on the frame, means including a latch to urge the rolls together, a guard plate pivoted to the frame and including a portion extending from a level below the rolls to a point above the rolls over which material is fed to pass downwardly into the rolls, and a connection between the guard plate and latch to release the latch upon a predetermined movement of the guard plate about its pivot.

3. A wringer comprising a. frame, a pair of rolls rotatably mounted on the frame, a spring urging the rolls together, a latch for holding the spring including a rotatable cam member on the frame engageable with the spring and rotatable to release the spring, a guard plate pivoted to the frame including a portion extending from below the level of the rolls to a point above the rolls over which material is fed down into the rolls, and a part on the guard plate engaging the cam member to rotate it to spring releasing position when the guard plate is rocked about its pivot in a predetermined direction.

4. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls rotatably mounted on the frame in substantially parallel alignment, a guard plate extending above the rolls over which material is fed down into the rolls, a drain board beneath the rolls terminating at one edg closely adjacent one of the rolls to receive material therefrom, the drainboard having a perforated portion adjacent the rolls, and a drain plate beneath the rolls connected to the drainboard at the lower part of the perforated portion.

5. A wringer comprising a, frame, a pair of rolls rotatably mounted on the frame in substantially parallel alignment, a guard plate extending above the rolls over which material is fed down into the rolls, a drainboard beneath the rolls terminating at one edge closely adjacent one of the rolls to receive material therefrom, the drainboard having a perforated portion adjacent the rolls and an imperforate portion connected thereto and extending in a direction away from the guard plate, and a drain plate connected to the drainboard at the juncture of the perforate and imperforate portions and extending away from the rolls in the opposite direction than the drainboard.

6. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls on the frame lying in a plane at an acute angle to the horizontal, a guard plate at one side of the rolls extending above the rolls and over Which material is fed into the rolls, a feed plate at the opposite side of the rolls extending upwardly and outwardly therefrom, and a drainboard beneath the rolls terminating at one edge closely adjacent the rolls to receive material therefrom.

'7. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls on the frame lying in a plane at an acute angle to the horizontal, a guard plate at one side of the rolls extending above the rolls and over which material is fed into the rolls, a hollow feed plate at the opposite sid of the rolls extending upwardly and outwardly therefrom, a drainboard beneath the rolls to receive material therefrom, a drain plate beneath the rolls to conduct water therefrom, and means connecting the interior of the hollow feed plate to the drain plate to conduct water collecting in the feed plate to the drain plate.

8. A wringer comprising a frame, a pair of rolls on the frame lying in a, plane at anacute angle to '5 the horizontal, a guard plate at one side of the rolls extending above the rolls and over which material is fed into the rolls, a hollow feed plate at the opposite side of the rolls extending upwardly and outwardly therefrom, a drainboard below the rolls terminating at one edge closely adjacent the rolls to receive material therefrom, the drainboard having a perforated portion adjacent'the rolls, a drain plate connected to the drainboard adjacent the end of the perforated portion, and means to conduct water from the interior of the feed plate to the drain plate.

9. A wringer comprising a fixed support, drive means adjacent, the support, a frame rotatable on the support about a vertical axis, rolls rotatal5 bly mounted on the frame, one of the rolls having a shaft extending beyond the frame at each end, and means for selectively connecting the drive means to either end of the shaft.

10. A wringer comprising a fixed support, drive means adjacent the support terminating in a horizontal driving shaft, a frame rotatablepn the support about a vertical axis, rolls rotatably mounted on the frame, one of the rolls having a 10 shaft extending beyond the frame at each end and adapted to align with the driving shaft alternately as the frame is rotated, and a shiftable coupling on the driving shaft to connect it to a shaft end aligned therewith.

ROBERT W. SHIELD. 

